The AFL will continue to set a 10m protected area around the mark after trialling the rule during the pre-season.The
protected zone is designed to make it easier for the player with the
ball to assess his options and it will now be used in regular season
matches."It is the general view that the ability of teams to move
the ball has improved with the larger protected area," said AFL
operations manager Mark Evans.Umpires have also had a stricter
interpretation of illegal tackles and deliberate out of bounds decisions
during the NAB Challenge.

AFL football boss Mark Evans on Tuesday told the Herald Sun the rule was not brought in to stop players ­trailing through the area ­following their opponent.

He is hopeful the larger ­restricted zone will allow sides to quickly play on and surge down the centre corridor.

It believes clubs were ­“double-guarding” the mark, putting a player just 5m away to prevent a player quickly playing on.

The AFL last year brought in a 90-rotation cap with four interchange players for the 2016 season.